World Cup 2019: Rating the performances of Fab 4 in the tournament

In the current era, Steven Smith (Australia), Virat Kohli (India), Joe Root (England), and Kane Williamson (New Zealand) are collectively known as ‘Fab 4’. The quartet's dominance in both the ODIs and Tests have separated them from the rest of the cricketers. Hence, there were massive expectations on them before the start of World Cup 2019.

Virat Kohli, the Indian skipper, entered the tournament as the No.1 batsman in the ODIs. For Steven Smith, the World Cup was his first International assignment since the infamous 'Sandpaper' incident.

Joe Root was expected to complement the aggressive nature of other England batsmen and anchor the innings. Meanwhile, Kane Williamson and his men once again went into an ICC tournament with the tag of underdogs.

With the tournament over now, let us look at how these players have fared in this year's World Cup.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author, and they do not necessarily represent the views of Sportskeeda.

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#1 Steven Smith – (7.75/10)

Steven Smith

With a century against England in the warm-up game before the World Cup, Steven Smith set the tone for himself for the tournament. He was expected to continue his excellent run in the World Cup.

Since the Australian openers did the bulk of the damage in their opening encounter against Afghanistan, Smith had very little time in the middle. Nevertheless, he scored three half-centuries in his next four matches. In particular, his fighting knock of 73 against West Indies rescued Australia from a batting collapse.

Smith suffered a dip in form towards the end of the league stage. He shrugged off his poor form by once again rescuing Australia from a batting collapse in the semi-final. His rescue knock of 85 helped Australia to post a target of 224. However, the Englishmen quickly chased down the target in 32.1 overs.

Overall, Smith scored 379 runs in his ten innings with four half-centuries. Besides that, he claimed one wicket in his four overs of bowling. It is fair to say that Smith had an average World Cup 2019 campaign.

#2 Virat Kohli – (8.5/10)

Virat Kohli scored five consecutive half-centuries in the tournament

Virat Kohli had a poor start to his World Cup 2019 campaign. In India’s opening game against South Africa, he managed to score only 18 runs. However, he bounced back strongly by scoring five consecutive half-centuries in his next five outings.

Though Kohli failed to register a century in the league stage, he was expected to score a big one in the semi-final clash against New Zealand. However, the Indian skipper was outdone by Trent Boult’s delivery as he scored just a single run. In the end, we witnessed a repeat of the Champions Trophy 2017 final as India lost the match by 18 runs.

Overall, Kohli scored 443 runs in nine matches with five half-centuries. Kohli's inability to convert his starts into big scores and a failure in the semi-final was a negative point for the Indian captain.

#3 Joe Root – (9/10)

Joe Root finished fifth in the overall run-getters list

Joe Root kicked-off his World Cup 2019 campaign with a half-century against South Africa in the opening game of the competition. His first hundred of the tournament came in a losing effort against Pakistan.

However, his second hundred resulted in a win against West Indies. In that specific game against West Indies, Root opened the innings for England because of an injury to Jason Roy. Later, he scored two more half-centuries against Afghanistan and Sri Lanka.

In the semi-final game against Australia, he remained unbeaten on 49 and finished off the run chase. A similar performance was expected from Root in the final. However, he was dismissed for just seven runs in the final.

Overall, Root scored 556 runs in his 11 innings with two centuries and three half-centuries. Besides, he bowled ten overs and claimed two wickets in the tournament. In the end, Root finished fifth in the overall run-getters list.

#4 Kane Williamson – (9.75/10)

Kane Williamson

Kane Williamson's 85 runs in the warm-up game against West Indies was a sign of things to come in the World Cup. Since New Zealand finished off their run chase against Sri Lanka without losing a wicket, Williamson was made to wait for his chance in the middle.

In his first outing against Bangladesh, he scored 40 runs and also had a 100-run partnership with Ross Taylor. Later, he scored his first half-century of the tournament against Afghanistan.

Williamson's first century of the tournament helped New Zealand to cross the finishing line against South Africa. He registered his career-best score of 148 in the game against West Indies. In the matches against Pakistan and Australia, he bowled a few overs and claimed two wickets.

It was in the semi-final in which we witnessed the sheer cricketing brilliance of Williamson. As opposed to the opinions of viewers, experts, and the opposition, Williamson felt that 240 was defendable on the Old Trafford pitch. Hence, he batted accordingly with Taylor and stitched together a decent partnership. Eventually, his assessment proved to be correct as New Zealand won the match by 18 runs.

In the final against England, Williamon started his typical rescue act once again. However, England’s middle-overs expert, Liam Plunkett, dismissed him for just 30 runs. In the end, the final became the one of the most exciting games in the history of ODIs.

Overall, Williamson scored 578 runs in his nine innings and finished fourth in the overall run-getters list. He was deservedly adjudged as the ‘Player of the Series’ at the end of the tournament.